Police Week: Drive to Remember
Posted by Peter Holran
May 10-16 is National Police Week 2009. The 28th Annual National Peace Officer Memorial Day is this Friday, May 15. Thousands of law enforcement officers along with their families, friends and supporters will descend on Washington, DC, this week to pay tribute to the men and women of law enforcement and to honor and remember those who gave their lives in the service of others. I will be joined by several people from TASER International and the TASER Foundation in our Nation’s capital this week.
Every day more than 850,000 law enforcement officers in the United States and Canada work to fulfill a sworn oath — to protect and serve. Sometimes these officers make the ultimate sacrifice and are tragically killed in the line of duty.
In 2008, 141 officers in the United States and Canada were killed while on duty. Since records have been kept, more than 6,000 law enforcement agencies have lost officers in the line of duty. The average age of an officer lost in the line of duty is only 38-years-old.
Police Week is an amazing tribute and a celebration of these brave men and women who keep our communities safe. But it is not the only tribute. Many communities held ceremonies earlier in May. Still other events have been ongoing for days and weeks, culminating at Police Week or other celebrations. The third annual TASER Foundation for Fallen Officers “Drive to Remember” is one such rolling tribute.
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Guardian One at Barksdale Air Force Base. Check out the Blue Angels in formation in the background.
On April 28, 2009, Vancouver Police Department Sgt. Steve Gibson and Craig Prystay departed Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in a special Hummer® H3 named the Guardian One. During the 12-day “Drive to Remember,” Gibson and Prystay drove the Guardian One more than 5,100 miles though 19 states, one Canadian province and more than 25 major cities attending many special events honoring law enforcement officers who were killed in the line of duty in 2008 and in prior years.
Guardian One displays the names of each officer killed in the line of duty in 2008. Signatures and messages from the officers’ loved ones have been added to the Guardian One during its cross county “Drive.” The special Hummer also displays an inspirational letter written by Allison Eales to her father, Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper David “Rocky” Eales, which became the motivation for the “Drive to Remember.” In the letter to her father, Allison thanks him for teaching her courage even through his death, expresses her pride that he knew the difference between right and wrong, and sadly gave the ultimate sacrifice trying to do what was right. Sgt. Gibson felt compelled to share Allison’s letter with as many people as possible.
The names of officers killed in the line of duty in 2008 on the hood of Guardian One.
Guardian One arrives officially at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC, at 4:00 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, May 13. The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial (NLEOM) is located on F Street, NW, between 4th and 5th Streets.
Scheduled to join Gibson and Prystay at the NLEOM arrival event are: Country Music Artist and TASER Foundation board member, Mark Wills; American Gladiators Don “Wolf” Yates and Valerie “Siren” Waugaman; and TASER Foundation CEO Kathy Hanrahan.
The Guardian One Hummer will be on display in Washington, DC, for the remainder of National Police Week at the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #1, located at 200 K Street, NW.
This week is National Police Week. Whether or not you have the privilege of seeing Guardian One or the chance to attend an official event during the week, please take a minute to say thank you to a law enforcement officer and his or her family. They’ve earned it!